TripAdvisor has released their annual list of the 10 dirtiest hotels in the United States. New York City is lucky enough to be home to numbers 1 and 3!

Check it out here and prepare to be grossed out! You have to wonder how places with such horrific reviews stay in business.

Hi Everyone!

Just a quick note to let you know I’m still here. My blogging has slowed down because there hasn’t been a lot to blog about lately in travel. There are some amazing deals to be had so, if you’ve been hoping to take a trip and your financial situation is stable, go for it now!

I’m working on my post about Barcelona!

Many people are holding off on travel plans this year because they fear losing their jobs. JetBlue is offering travelers some piece of mind with the JetBlue Promise Program which will cancel and refund your ticket purchases if you find yourself suddenly out of work. The deal is only valid for flights booked between February 1-June 1, 2009 and there are a decent amount of restrictions that apply but it’s a nice incentive for people to go ahead with travel plans despite the economic uncertainty.

JetBlue Promise Program

A lot of people love the internet phone system Skype because it allows you to make free long distance calls. Myngle, uses the technology to match up language students and teachers from around the world. The site offers over 2,000 live classes in just about every language you can think of. Just pick a teacher and set up a lesson time when you’ll call the instructor and log in to the website for your class. Prices vary, but are generally around $10/half hour. If you’ve ever taken a language class, you know this is a bargain. Check out their demo video above!

Source: National Geographic Traveler

In yet another effort to “green” travel, many hotels located in cities are offering the use of bikes to their guests for free. The Ace Hotel in Portland Oregon offers Dutch bikes while the Gansevoort South in Miami stocks glow in the dark Pumas. In Chicago, The James has Paul Frank bikes and all properties in the Westin Element chain carry trek bikes.

Source: National Geographic Traveler

I just found some amazing prices to Europe from Newark Airport on Continental Airlines and I don’t seem them published anywhere so who knows how long they will last. I found airfares under $400 INCLUDING TAXES to Geneva, Zurich, Copenhagen, Rome, Brussels and Lisbon for dates in February through early May. Aside from Brussels, I’ve never seen flights to these places for under $500 so this is really a unique opportunity. Also, the dollar is stronger than it’s been in years, so your money is going to go a lot farther in Europe right now. Get them before they disappear!

*TIP* I found the best rates for travel on weekdays. The fares will be higher if you fly either way on a Saturday or Sunday.

Continental.com

With the Northwest/Delta merger now underway, it was only a matter of time before they started the process of combining frequent flyer miles. Right now, they are offering 500 bonus miles to all customers who link their Skymiles and Worldperks accounts by March 15, 2009. If you don’t have one or the other, open it up for the miles!

Once your accounts are linked, you can transfer freely between the programs as often as you like until they are ultimately combined into Delta’s Skymiles program. This creates some very unusual opportunities for flyers. If you have enough miles for a ticket or upgrade award you can search both programs for availability and transfer the miles into your best option for redemption. If you’ve been sitting on miles because you had trouble redeeming them in one program, try the other. I’ve always loved Worldperks and found it much easier to cash in miles there than anywhere else.

The promotion also gives American Express cardholders a chance to cash in Membership Rewards for Worldperks by depositing them into their Skymiles account and transferring them over.

There are a few things to be aware of. Transferred miles will not count as Elite Qualifying miles on either airline. Also, Northwest will count the transfer as activity to extend the expiration date on your Worldperks, but Delta will not for Skymiles. That means if your Delta miles are about to expire, the transferred Worldperks would expire on the same date so be careful and make sure you don’t lose everything!

All in all, I think this is a great feature. Although it is only temporary, it will make the merger much smoother and keep frequent flyers on both sides happy…at least for now!

You can link your Delta and Northwest mile accounts and read the full list of terms and conditions here.

Travel site GeckoGo will help you plan the perfect trip. Just tell them what you like to do and when you want to travel and they’ll compile a list of the best destinations for your choices. I think it’s a great way to get started with vacation plans, especially if you have no idea where you want to go!

Visit My Adventures to read about our visit to Death Valley National Park in California and check out my pictures on my Photos page or by clicking into the album through one of the images posted.

Date of trip: December 2008

People picture different things when they hear about Death Valley National Park. I always thought of a desert while Will imagined the patterned salt flats but everyone thinks of extreme weather. Summers in the park are brutally hot so most people visit in the winter when the temperatures are comfortably in the 70s during the day and the 50s at night.

When Will and I decided to spend Christmas in Las Vegas, I remembered that Death Valley is only about 2 1/2 hours from there and thought it would be the perfect opportunity to check it out.

Highlights:

-Death Valley is very isolated and there are few lodging options. The nicest place to stay is the Furnace Creek Inn. At $300/night, the rooms are expensive but they are well appointed and many offer spectacular views of the park. In addition, the Inn has a natural, spring fed pool which stays at a temperature of 85 degrees year round and is flanked by fireplaces to help guests dry after a swim. If you can’t splurge on the Inn, there are more affordable rooms and cabins, as well as a campground nearby. I do recommend the Inn dining room either way as the food is fantastic but reservations should be made in advance.

-It’s hard to imagine someone living in Death Valley but Scotty’s Castle is proof that it’s not only possible, but can be done in style! In the 1920s, Chicago millionaire Albert Johnson built a mansion in the northern section of Death Valley to serve as a vacation home. He chose the area for its dry climate and because his friend, and renowned con man, Walter Scott loved it so much. The unlikely pair met when Johnson got caught up in one of Scott’s schemes. Johnson loved Scott’s carefree, wild lifestyle and the two became friends. Scott liked to tell people the mansion was his, hence the name “Scotty’s Castle”. Today the property is owned by the park and there are excellent guided tours offered frequently. The house is very interesting and it gives visitors a unique picture of Death Valley’s past. Right off of the castle road is a turn for the Ubehebe Crater, a 600 foot deep chasm caused by a volcano 300 years ago. Whether or not you choose to hike in or around the crater, be sure to visit in the morning or mid-day when the sun is bright for the best views.

-The main attraction at Salt Creek is the little pupfish that live in the salty water. Pupfish are known for their ability to live in extreme conditions and this is the only place in the world to see this particular species. Unfortunately, the fish are only active in the spring so we didn’t see them, but we still enjoyed the peacefulness of the creek and walking the boardwalk that winds all around it.

-I mentioned before that I pictured the park as a desert and there are areas that are covered in sand dunes. We visited the Mesquite Flat Sand Dunes and it was definitely a highlight of our time in Death Valley. You can easily reach the area on foot after parking on the road although it is a hike to the taller dunes. The sand is very fine so boots are a must and it’s important to stay aware of how far and high you’ve walked as you want to make sure you have the energy to get back. Being among the dunes is really fun! It feels like a giant sandbox and the sand absorbs a lot of sound so you feel alone even with other people around. Many people visit the dunes at night in the moonlight but Will and I weren’t brave enough to return after dark with rattlesnakes around.

-In contrast to the sandy hills of Mesquite, Badwater Basin is low and covered in salt crystals. At 282ft below sea level, it’s the lowest point in North America. There is a sign in the mountains above the parking lot to mark sea level so you can see just how low you are. Walking on the salt flats is allowed except in the summer when Badwater is typically the hottest area in the park. It was in Badwater that the second highest temperature on Earth of 134F was recorded in 1913! The nearby Devil’s Golf Course is also covered in salt crystals but unlike the flat Basin it is rocky and jagged.

-In the late 1800s several borax refineries were located in Death Valley. There are ruins and an original wagon at the Harmony Borax Works where you can read about the tough life the workers and their famous 20 mule team had transporting the goods. To learn even more, you can pay a visit to the Borax Museum at the Furnace Creek Ranch which is small but very interesting and is open late.

-There are many beautiful canyons and scenic trails in the park. Zabriskie Point is the best place to watch the sun come up and its rays bounce off the slotted walls of Golden Canyon. In your car, Artist’s Drive will take you through brightly colored mountains that look painted and the one way road through 20 Mule Team Canyon is full of fun twists and turns. Although some of the roads are unpaved, all of these places can be reached without difficulty in a standard vehicle .

I love all of the U.S. National Parks but Death Valley stands out because of its diversity. In a place famous for extreme conditions you would hardly expect to see such a variety of natural and man-made sights. Death Valley is like a collection of several different parks and each one is as equally impressive and worthy of a visit as the last.

For more pictures, please visit my Photo Gallery or click on any of the photos posted above.

Death Valley Links:
National Park Service Death Valley Page
Furnace Creek Inn and Ranch Resort